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tv   Piers Morgan Tonight  CNN  November 22, 2012 2:00am-3:00am PST

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that does tonight, cease-fire, israel and hamas lay down their arms, for now. >> this is a critical moment for the region. the right thing for the state of israel is to exhaust this opportunity to obtain a long-term cease-fire. >> our brothers will guarantee the implementation of all of these understandings in this agreement. >> will the fragile peace hold? both sides tell me what it will take. also, rudy giuliani on what it all means for america. plus, is it all too soon to talk 2016, and should we be
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talking about hillary clinton? my political all-stars battle it out. this is "piers morgan tonight." good evening, big story tonight, celebrations in the middle east over the fragile peace, a cease-fire, the israeli president, netanyahu. >> we want the entire world to understand our people and our cause. through you, we can explain the pale faces of the leaders of the enemy because they have failed in their attempt. >> i have to say that all of this was done with the firm support on the part of the leaders of the international community, and i would like especially to thank president barack obama for his unreserved
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support. >> questions on both sides and around the world. how long can peace last? i want to go now to cnn's arwa damon in gaza city. arwa, what's the atmosphere like in gaza city, and is there a sense that hamas has strengthened its position through the last eight or nine days? >> reporter: there is to a certain degree if you look at the terms of the cease-fire. at the very least, it does state israel most open its border crossings. we don't know what it will translate to at this stage. but from the people we speak to here, they do feel that this time around, the israelis, yes, it was indirectly, but they were forced to come to an agreement via the mediator, versus four years ago. the mood on the street here earlier was one of celebration. some people celebrating the fact that they do view this as being
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a victory over israel as having stood up in the face of what they describe to be israeli aggression, but for others, it was celebrating the fact that after days of bombardment, they were able to just go outside. >> yes, you can see the pictures here of people looking jubilant, probably just getting out, as you say. when you look at the way this has played out particularly, clearly mohamed morsi playing a pivotal role here. how is egypt calling the shots in terms of the way the palestinians are reacting? >> reporter: well, on the one hand, one needs to remember when it came to trying to mediate deals between these two sides, egypt has always played something of a pretty critical and central role. what has changed now is the
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dynamics between egypt and israel after the arab spring, and after the fact that hosni mubarak, who was a staunch ally of the west and is no longer in power. and now the egyptians became an entity because of the fact they are led by the muslim brotherhood, became an entity significantly closer to the hamas leadership here in gaza. that really changed a lot of the dynamics and the way we've been seeing things play out on the ground. the dynamics of what is transpiring that led to the cease-fire, we'll have to wait and see if it holds. that is what has changed, most certainly, egypt, given the fact it is a very young government, has at least for now proven itself. in one sense it has passed that critical test. >> arwa damon, thank you very much. here now with a view from jerusalem the israeli government spokesperson. welcome to you. >> thanks for having me.
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>> can you outline exactly what you believe the spirit of this agreement to be today? >> it's an arrangement that has been negotiated with egypt and with the support of the united states, and it promises us what this whole campaign was about. it promises the people of southern israel peace and quiet. it promises them that they no longer have to live in constant fear of an incoming rocket launched from the gaza strip. it promises them for the first time in a very long time the possibility to live a normal life. and from our point of view, if these promises are fulfilled, that's a good thing. >> i understand that also it promises the people of gaza, perhaps, a better future. we're hearing via "the new york times" as i speak to you that the terms also state the
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underlying grievances of gaza, the movement that impedes through gaza, will be started 24 hours after the cease-fire is in effect. now, that is clearly a big move by israel. >> i think it's important to remember the following. there's cause and there's effect. when we pulled out of gaza in 2005, when we took down our settlements and pulled back to the international frontier, there were no restrictions in place whatsoever. our restrictions were in place when we started to see hostility from gaza, and terrorism and rockets aimed at our people. and if you think about it, that is only normal. i mean, how can you expect they were shooting at us? they couldn't expect to have normal relations. if we are now indeed going into a period of quiet where we no longer have that violence. where we no longer have that active hostility, obviously, that changes the reality for us and allows us to turn the page.
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we have no trouble taking steps that will see improvement in the quality of life. >> one of the main concerns for many israelis is that this is going to be one step nearer hamas becoming legitimate. having said that, if you look at northern ireland it was only when the political wing of the ira was legitimized, that they achieved any lasting settlement. do you see a parallel there? and do you see a time when hamas will be seen as a legitimate body by israel? >> you know, if hamas changed, if hamas moderated its positions, if hamas met the three benchmarks articulated by the united nations, that is recognizing my country's right
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to exist, abandoning terrorism and violence, supporting peace, then the door is open to negotiations. but the bad news is i see no evidence of that so far. on the contrary, i think in many ways hamas is stuck in a very extreme position and the evidence for that we saw today. we had the bombing in tel aviv on the bus. and hamas praised that. they welcomed that. they said that was legitimate. and so as long as hamas is doing that sort of thing it is difficult to be optimistic. but if they do change, if they do moderate. if they fundamentally reserve some of their very hard line positions, the door can be opened. >> i mean, do you accept, though, obviously in the last eight or nine days, 30 times as many palestinians have been killed as israelis? so clearly, there is bloodshed on both sides. and israel is not blameless here, either. >> i think the most important
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issue, though, is what were we doing? i mean, this whole operation was not to take territory or change regimes or something grandiose like that. our operation was purely defensive. our goal was to protect our people so that the population of southern israel would not have to live in daily fear of an incoming rocket. we didn't want this operation. it was forced upon us by hamas' aggressive action. i hope that these understandings reach with egypt and the good office of the united states as well. and we should thank the american government will hold and we get peace. that's good for israel. that's also good for gaza. >> mark regev, thank you for joining me. >> my pleasure, sir. >> i want to turn to the other side. welcome to you, sir. how much of a concern is it to
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you that abas had very little to do with this cease-fire being broken? in fact, nothing, we understand. >> no, i hope the americans will not fall into another mistake. palestine and the palestine question is indivisible. gaza is part of the palestinian territory. they are part of the palestinian people. and the question of palestinian leadership is authentic. the people elected the leader of the palestinian people. but the americans try to divert their attention from the central issue of how to go about making peace in the middle east, and try to concentrate just how to control one party or another, this will be a grave mistake, a disservice to peace and to the stability of this region. >> so are you personally concerned that all the dealings here appear to have been done directly with hamas, and not
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with a wider group to include president abbas? >> well, president abbas was not absent from these negotiations. of course, when there is a fire, the extinguisher goes directly to the cause of the fire, but it is part and parcel of the palestinian struggle against the israeli occupation. if we were only to look for the future of the cease-fire, this is another mistake will be made. we have to deal with the root cause of the conflict here. the united states of america was very right when it started -- in the latter part of president bush jr., the presidency afterwards, to give the priority to the palestinian/israeli conflict, to put these barometers for that. president obama himself on the 19th of may last year when he spoke from the state department, he outlined how peace can be
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achieved in this region, by creating a palestinian state. unfortunately, this was not followed by the americans. they kept a blind eye to the israeli measures that are destructive to the peace process. only going after the palestinians, trying to even prevent them from trying to preserve the consensus of the international community, which is the two-state solution. and here, i think the american policy has to be reviewed to do service to both israelis and palestinians alike, as mrs. clinton said this evening in cairo at the press conference. that they have to meet the aspirations of the palestinian people. we need seriousness in approaching this way of solving
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the conflict. >> thank you very much for joining me. hamas leader says he wants the world to understand his people and his cause. we have an interview exclusively. ♪ [ male announcer ] you build a reputation by not breaking down. consider the silverado 1500 -- still the most dependable, longest-lasting full-size pickups on the road. and now we've also been recognized for lowest total cost of ownership -- based on important things, like depreciation, fuel, and maintenance costs. and now trade up to get a 2012 chevy silverado all-star edition with a total value of $9,000. from outstanding value to standing the test of time, chevy runs deep. i got your campbell's chunky soup. mom? who's mom? i'm the giants mascot. the giants don't have a mascot! ohhh! eat up! new jammin jerk chicken soup has tasty pieces of chicken with rice and beans. hmmm. for giant hunger!
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[ whistles ] hello! [ all ] hello! [ coach ] caleb, i've got someone i want you to meet. hello. [ male announcer ] at&t. the nation's largest 4g network. covering 3,000 more 4g cities and towns than verizon. rethink possible. celebrations in gaza, but how long will the celebrations last? joining me now from cairo, christiane amanpour, and global affairs anchor, welcome to you. i want to start by playing a brief clip from your interview with hamas' political leader. let's listen to this and talk afterwards. >> is there ever a circumstance under which you will recognize israel's right to exist? >> translator: i will give you a reply, direct reply, and a lesson. about the direct answer, i
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accept the palestinian state according to 1967 borders. with jerusalem as the capital, with the right to return. >> i know you say the right to return, but you know everybody is not going to be able to return to israel, you know that. >> translator: please, say it again. >> under the international agreements, every palestinian who is living there is not going to be able to come back to israel. >> translator: who said that? who said that? >> that is the other parameters. >> translator: i tell you, i accept. >> they can come to the palestinian state. >> translator: i tell you, my sister, you are with cnn, a respected channel. do a survey, where the palestinians are. if you don't find the big majority that want to return to their land, then i'm wrong. >> what did you make with your interview, in particular, the way he defined how a possible peace settlement could unravel here?
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>> reporter: well, he was talking about eventual recognition of the state of israel because that's what everybody wants to know about the palestinians. that's one of the reasons why he's not involved in the peace process. so it's vital to really try to push him on what would it take to recognize the state of israel. and his last answer was really interesting, that it would be up to the palestinians in terms of a final peace agreement. but in terms of how long this truce might last. i know both sides want this to last, nobody wanted the ground war. nobody wants to see more people killed. if it is true that some of these parameters are met. in other words, that the israelis started to lift the restrictions in the blockade of gaza, easing the people's ability to move out, the moving of commerce and goods, in other words, the ability to move in and out, that will be very important. by the same token, if israel sees there are no other big rockets fired into israel this
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will be very important. so there is sort of the short term, and the long term is whether the united states and the palestinians can get together and hammer out a peace process. and that is a lot more dubious. but without that, you know, cynics say this is just one of many cycles, this could go on for another couple of years in relative quiet and explode again. >> who do you get a sense of having control now amongst the palestinians? there's a feeling that abbas is being pushed aside, really, and that hamas are beginning to assume more and more power and authority. it may not necessarily be a bad thing, given that they are the ones who are really at war with israel. if they can be brought to a table, if they can do a deal, that may be the best chance of getting a proper lasting peace. >> reporter: well, as i say,
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it's going to be a while before they can get hamas to the peace table. and that is, hamas has to renounce violence and go to the peace process. but at looks as though, at least this past week of war that the palestinian authority on the west bank has been marginalized. and this world, of which it is part, hamas has much more stature and relationships with all of these new governments. and you know, hamas is meant to be isolated by the u.s., and israel, they don't want anybody to have anything to do with the outside, even get fresh air. what did we see over this last week? we saw arab leaders literally beating the door down to try to get into gaza first and stand shoulder to shoulder with hamas. so that's what they're saying publicly. obviously, the really unbelievable thing was how incredibly well egypt worked and got this deal. and everybody from the president
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of the united states to hillary clinton to the israelis know that it's egypt and its new islamist president and his government who made this happen. >> christiane amanpour, thank you very much indeed. coming next, rudy giuliani has more on the cease-fire and if it will hold. have a good night. here you go. you, too. i'm going to dream about that steak. i'm going to dream about that tiramisu. what a night, huh? but, um, can the test drive be over now? head back to the dealership? [ male announcer ] it's practically yours. but we still need your signature. volkswagen sign then drive is back. and it's never been easier to get a passat. that's the power of german engineering. get $0 down, $0 due at signing, $0 deposit, and $0 first month's payment on any new volkswagen. visit vwdealer.com today.
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>> translator: i would like especially to thank president barack obama for his unreserved support for israel's actions in the operation and for israel's right to defend itself as well as his support for the iron dome systems. >> israeli prime minister benjamin netanyahu thanking president obama for standing by israel's side during the fighting. but did the white house handle the crisis effectively? joining me now, former new york mayor and presidential candidate, rudy giuliani joining me, welcome. >> how are you, piers? >> i want to read you a tweet from a mutual friend of ours, president obama's steady support throughout the crisis helped to stop the war. he did a good job.
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do you know who wrote that? >> i don't. >> donald trump. >> well, that is good, donald can be even-handed, i like that. >> the fact he has publicly gone on record saying that would indicate that it would be very, very hard for my republicans to be too critical of president obama. how do you view the president's time in the last few days? >> i don't see why you would be critical of a cease-fire, all we can do is hope it lasts. it is probably too early to have a final conclusion of the situation. you're going to have to monitor this situation. i would prefer to say, i would be cautiously optimistic. at the same time, we shouldn't get too overly excited when you see the underlying tensions that are here when you see that scene that i just saw a few moments ago again of the body being dragged through the streets of gaza. you got a sense of the elements you're dealing with here. so this is a good development.
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i think hillary clinton and barack obama as well as benjamin netanyahu, and people on the palestinian side, and it looks like even egypt played a constructive role here. let's hope they can continue on that road. >> i think the egyptian role is very significant indeed. there were lots the of concerns about president morsi and the rise of the muslim brotherhood, exactly how they would behave in a situation like this. he seems to have been pivotal and extremely constructive to the extent that president obama spoke to him three times in the last 24 hours, leaving instructions he was to be woken if president morsi wanted to talk to him. he was indeed woken at 2:00 a.m. cambodia time for another conversation. i would have thought that's very encouraging for the arab spring, which everyone has been very concerned has been turning on its head. going forward, you have the new president of egypt looking to do a deal and work in cohorts with
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america and indeed israel. >> it seems like although at the very beginning he made some statements that were very questionable, supporting the hamas side. it seems to me over the last couple of days he has taken a much more balanced approach, certainly more than turkey. hopefully by doing that, he freezes iran out. because i have a sense, as many do, that iran was behind a lot of this. after all, many of the missiles were iranian missiles. so if morsi can assert himself, continue to assert himself, put himself in the middle of this, maybe he can push iran out and you'll have a more rational discussion about this. i think morsi -- the jury is out on morsi. he's said some things that are constructive. he said some things that have been extremely damaging, and we're going to have to see going forward which morsi we're dealing with. >> what about the palestinian situation where you have mahmoud abbas on one side, and hamas on
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the other? you basically have two governments working there. is it possible to even get to a serious discussion about a two-state solution if you don't really know which government is calling the shots? >> it is hard, isn't it? it's really hard because you don't know who you're negotiating with on the case of hamas and the related groups that are part of this. because some of them are loosely affiliated with hamas. you do have a wing of hamas that is extremely violent. extremely dangerous, as you see from the scenes that we saw, the body being dragged through the streets and people being killed. on the other hand, fatah doesn't seem to have enough control over the people. you would hope we can get them to work together so that they can have a common purpose. i don't think you can finally get to a solution here until the two of them are working together. >> briefly, rudy, we talked about the republican party. what about chris christie who is getting flak from the senior
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members who think he was disloyal in the last few days because of his conflict with the repercussions of hurricane sandy and him embracing the president's support. what was your view? >> i had dinner with chris two days after the election and told him my view. i'll tell you. he did what he had to do as governor. i did that several times as mayor of new york and got hurt, even within the republican party that i had to overcome. this will all pass, i think chris will get re-elected, as governor of new jersey. i think his future is unlimited. maybe people are annoyed, and somewhat narrow. the governor has the first obligation to the people of his state. the people of his state, a number of them died, they're in a terrible situation. he needed the help of the president of the united states. he had to put that first.
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>> would you like to see chris christie running a potential president in 2016? >> well, you know, you're preaching to the converted here. if i wasn't the fist -- first republican to support chris from out of the state, i was the second. so i'm a very big supporter of chris christie. i think he has been an excellent governor. i think he is exactly the kind of public servant we need. somebody who can put the interest of his state ahead of anything else, including the head of his party. that has to always come second. >> rudy, thank you. next, tell me what the cease-fire means for two people. . [ male announcer ] this is bob,
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well, celebrations in the streets of gaza, we know what officials on both sides are saying about the truce. but what effect is it having on the civilians? can they trust peace will last? joining me, the journalist, from tel aviv. welcome to you both. what has life been like for you in gaza over the last eight or
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nine days? >> it was actually a very hard time for us, all of us, as a civilian. walking here in gaza, under this attack -- every day. we left the house early in the morning every day. and we think that we are not going back again to our children, to our kids inside the house. especially in the last three days when they started targeting different places of the media center here in gaza. even if these places belong to someone from hamas or from islamic jihad, it is more than other places, from other journalists, different agencies and channels. and seeing all of these kinds of people killed in the street, inside their homes. a lot of kids, you know, it makes me feel angry to hear that there is a cease-fire after all that.
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and i don't know if it is worth it, that we lost all of these kids and people to find the solution to go to the cease-fire. >> let me turn to natalie edelman, i mean, it is a desperate story that you're hearing there on the other side. obviously, it has been tough also for israelis. you have been living there with your husband and child, a frightening time in tel aviv. what is your view? >> it has been very difficult, this past eight days, also in israel. as a new mom, i just gave birth a month ago. i did prepare myself to sleep less nights, but i never imagined this was the reason i would stay up. while my daughter, danielle, stays up most of the night, i am worrying that we will rush to shelter. as you probably know there are 12-year-old kids in israel that
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don't know any other reality. they have been facing terror attacks and rockets on a daily basis. and i just wish that my daughter will be brought up to a different reality. we just want to raise our kids normally in peace, and it's been very, very difficult, especially today with the bombing, the terror attack on the bus in central tel aviv, which brings us back to a very, very difficult time. i grew up in tel aviv. i remember the days of the suicide bombings in tel aviv, these terrible bombings. it's very hard to explain the feeling. just living in constant threat. >> what would you say, natalie, to somebody like ameera, who is just like you, an innocent person, a young woman living with her family but on the other side? you're there on the split screen now. what would you say to her as a young israeli woman to a young palestinian woman? >> i am sure that she is facing a difficult reality.
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but i don't want to get into politics, because you know we are just civilians. but i can feel her story as a new mother. i can relate to her story, as well. but i just -- i can just tell you that we are dealing with a terrorist organization. hamas is controlling gaza at the moment. and that is a problem. i would wish -- i wish civilians there would do something to change that reality. but at the moment, israel is facing a very difficult situation of dealing with terrorism. and unfortunately, it strikes not only israel, the terrorism, it strikes all over the world of the -- it happened to be in america, and in london. and i would like to see more people involved, in the international community, it is awful for both sides. >> what would you say, ameera, in response to what natalie said
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there? >> i agree with her on the first part that we are both mothers and civilians and don't want to get involved in the political issues. but there is a part i don't agree with because if we go back to 2004 and when in 2005 when they decide to it make the palestinian election, it was a free election. and the people, they chose hamas. the israeli, they should respect their choice, as a people who are going to represent the palestinian people. if it is a terrorist organization it doesn't mean that all the palestinian people, they are terrorist people, you know? and especially in the last eight days, it was like a bloody war. and my girl, she keeps hearing the sound of bombing. every day, she thinks it is a party. because i put an image in her mind that this is a party, mommy, you shouldn't be scared
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of it. so i don't know how i can teach her the meaning of life to be a normal kid to live under peaceful times while she's growing up under attack each few days, you snow. >> what is clear from talking to both of you is when you cut away from all the politics and military wings of both these political sides, what you're left with are real people living in very, very difficult situations. the most important thing now is a cease-fire holds and the people who have been responsible for these rockets and missiles get together around a negotiating table and bring both of you a better life where you don't have to worry about what happens to your young children every day or young dharn belong to your friends and relatives. i thank you very much for joining me tonight. thank you. >> thank you. >> and we have our senior fellow, the author of "the islamist," welcome to you. >> thank you, piers, good to be on your show. >> i found that fascinating, the
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discussion between the two young mothers on both sides of this conflict. what did you make of what they said? >> the human aspect is very touching, without doubt. but what struck me most is the fact that, you know, i think here in the west and also in israel rightly we see hamas as a terrorist organization. the difficulty, of course, is on the ground in gaza and around the region, most of the middle east and beyond, hamas is not seen as a terrorist organization. and i think it is somehow that huge gap of understanding of approach that then leads to some level of sympathy for hamas's operations in the middle east, among the arab populations. and then this difficult condemnation on our side that doesn't necessarily want to bring people together to solve problems. >> i see a lot of parallels here with northern ireland, and not least because tony blair was
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prime minister and sorted peace there. he did it in a political way with the terrorist group, like hamas, and he just negotiated it through and he legitimized the i.r.a in the end. do you think that the process is happening with hamas now, given that so many palestinians and so many arab countries around israel believe it is an elected body and should be legitimized? >> what we saw in northern ireland was a two-track process. decommissioning weapons while at the same time maintaining peace talks. there's a lesson there, i think, for the israeli side and for hamas and others to commit to talks immediately without these preconditions of do away with a charter, you must give up your weapons immediately, and you've got recognize israel as a jewish
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state otherwise we can't talk. that rhetoric over the last 20, 30 years has resulted in this constant situation of going to war every four to five years. that policy can't be upheld. there's a new middle east. hamas is not as isolated as it was as recent as 2008. now it has allies in turkey and other places. for the obama administration to capitalize on this post-war situation and try to bring a lasting settlement to this difficult region by maintaining this twin-track policy. rather than trying to say unless you do x, y and z, we're not going to be talking to you. because the ugly reality, israelis are talking to hamas. you know, they did that this time around. you know, the u.s. spoke to the plo. we've been here before. you're right. northern ireland offers lessons to the israeli peace process now. >> it does. taung very much indeed. >> thank you, piers.
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next, my panel of all-stars on the mideast truce and what it means for the obama administration. about once a month. last time i was at a gas station was about...i would say... two months ago. i very rarely put gas in my chevy volt. i go to the gas station such a small amount that i forget how to put gas in my car. [ male announcer ] and it's not just these owners giving the volt high praise. volt received the j.d. power and associates appeal award two years in a row. ♪
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for the region. egypt's new government is assuming the responsibility and leadership that has long made this country a cornerstone of regional stability and peace. secretary of state clinton, praising egypt for helping to broker the peace. there is also political news here in america, congressman jesse jackson jr., stepping down. plets let's bring in our political all-stars to talk about that. welcome to you both. >> thanks for having us. >> charles blow, a fascinating few days in the middle east. also fascinating politically, i think, for mesh america. i think very good for president obama. he has clearly been leading the way with daily calls to president netanyahu, to president morsi. and he has got the cease-fire that he clearly wanted. as has secretary of state hillary clinton. she is now leaving. there is a vacancy for that role. what do you think of how this is
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playing out for obama, his administration and for the middle east? >> well, one thing that is really important to remember is that i think netanyahu has an election coming up in january. so you know, in our election he kind of bet on the wrong horse. you know, he made no qualms about the idea that he was a supporter of mitt romney, mitt romney didn't win. so now, president obama kindf has a bit of a stronger hand in that relationship, even though that relationship, as many people have noted is not the best relationship in the world. but now going into netanyahu's re-election bid, on the heels of this sort of conflict with the american government playing an instrumental role in bringing about a cease-fire, it kind of gives the obama administration, the state department a much stronger hand in the middle east in general. and i think it gives president obama a stronger hand both in the middle east and at home.
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because he is able to play this role with someone that he has not had the best relationship with. >> kristen soltis, do you agree with that? >> i think to an extent. i think it would be good for obama if the cease-fire is able to be maintained. particularly i think it will be good for secretary clinton, you know, whenever you get to be the one giving the press conference, that is sort of a good visual moment. what i think is really interesting is to watch how the arab spring has affected this. and how egypt's sort of new leadership, there were these real questionsbout to what extent would the president of egypt, part of the muslim brotherhood, to what extent would they play ball and be able to be a force for good and stability in the region? and so to the extent you can have them at the table trying to broker a deal, i think this isn't a partisan issue. i think a lot of americans will look favorably if the american
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government can play a positive role in bringing about peace. >> let's move on to two other issues before thanksgiving strikes us. one is the fiscal cliff. charles, do you get the same feeling that i have, that there is a more collective will to try to avoid falling off this cliff, and to get a deal done perhaps sooner rather than later? >> i absolutely do believe that. i believe that obama has a stronger hand. because if nothing happens, you know, no one wants that to happen. and in fact, the clock is ticking in that direction at this point. so everybody has kind of an incentive to say, let's cut some sort of deal. and i do believe that that deal will eventually encompass both the revenue increases and some sort of structural realignment of some of the entitlement programs. and i think that, i actually believe that the american people put aside what the right and the left want. the american people are actually
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desperate to see their government be able to work. to do something, to make it happen. to not go into another situation where we have another downgrade. that is exactly the opposite of what we want coming out of this presidential election where people, i think, spoke and spoke rather clearly that we're going to have a divided government. that the republicans will have the house, the democrats will have the senate. and the presidency. and we want you guys to make this work for us. >> i think that's right, isn't it, kristen soltis? i also see that among them, playing games, they realize since losing the election that the public really are not going to buy into much more of this apparent intransigence. >> the challenge to republicans is they got beat at the presidential level. now the question is, how did they retool what they're doing in handling of situations like
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this fiscal cliff to make the case to americans they are trying to make economic growth? you have had a lot of discussions, how can we create revenues, we are serious about growing revenues in addition to getting the spending cuts. the question is, how do you do it? by closing loopholes, raising rates. the other question, this has been talked about as a fiscal cliff, but i lately heard it described as a potential staircase, where there will be potential stages rather than one big deal that ends it all. this may be something where we come down a little bit more gradually. the big question is, what's the first stair look like? you have republicans who want to say, let's pass legislation now. we've passed it in the house to keep the tax rates where they are to stave this off for a moment. and democrats say we won't pass that because we want the rates
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to go up for the top bracket. so the question is, what does this opening move look like? i don't think there will be much agreement on even what the opening move looks like, moving forward. >> we don't want to be pessimistic, it is almost thanksgiving, let's all just wish each other happy thanksgiving, and wish all of our politicians to come back afterwards and just get some deals done. thank you both very much for joining me. >> thank you for having us. >> and we'll be right back. what a night, huh? but, um, can the test drive be over now? head back to the dealership? [ male announcer ] it's practically yours. but we still need your signature. volkswagen sign then drive is back. and it's never been easier to get a passat. that's the power of german engineering. get $0 down, $0 due at signing, $0 deposit, and $0 first month's payment on any new volkswagen. visit vwdealer.com today. on any new volkswagen. try running four.ning a restaurant is hard, fortunately we've got ink.
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this friday night, the average kind of holiday show, me and a bunch of crazy animals, jack hannah stops by with a bunch of his friends. if you know jack hannah, that means cheetahs, alligators, and a whole lot more. a menagerie of hell, really, as far as i'm concerned. take a look at this. >> this tail here, for example, you can touch the tail if you want to. the tail here, that gets much bigger, like this thinking. up there, it's 40, 50 below zero, whatever. wow. that was cool, wasn't it? >> very cool, yeah. two feet awa